SOILWORK drummer Dirk Verbeuren will sit in for Chris Adler on MEGADETH’s upcoming live dates while Adler is out with LAMB OF GOD, reports Bravewords.com.

Says Verbeuren: “I can’t thank Chris Adler enough for his kindness. It’s truly a huge honour to fill in for Chris in Megadeth, a band I grew up listening to. I’m so very grateful to Dave Mustaine, David Ellefson and Kiko Loureiro for their warm welcome. First show is tonight at Rock On The Range in Columbus, OH.

“Filling in for me in Soilwork is the amazing Bastian Thusgaard of The Arcane Order who also happens to be a student of mine. I know Bastian will do a fantastic job behind the kit!

“I will perform with both Soilwork and Megadeth at Sweden Rock and Graspop, and I’ll rejoin Soilwork on June 26th in Italy and throughout the rest of The Summer Majestic. See you on the road!”

Megadeth welcomes Dirk with these words: “News from Dave, Kiko, David, and Chris: please welcome our friend Dirk Verbeuren, who will be filling in at all shows until Chris rejoins on June 28th. Excited to be playing with this great drummer and great guy!”

Are you an arranger? Do you like Metal? Do you like Classical/Baroque music? Do you like Antonio Vivaldi’s masterpiece “The Four Seasons”? Do you like epic and majestic music? Let’s get started… It’s your chance to show your talent and skills and to be part of this great All-Metal-Stars “Vivaldi Metal Project”!

LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler has checked in with the following message:

Hey all! Things have been going really well on this trip for us. The band is playing well and much of the hard work we have put in is being rewarded with great slots on the festivals we are doing and huge side shows in between. I feel very lucky to be a part of where we are right now and am enjoying it quite a bit. I’ve now heard the Protest The Hero record and it’s fantastic! I love listening to it and hope you all do as well. I’ve been asked many times on this tour that since I played drums on the record if I will be touring with them or would consider playing on other projects. I’m fairly sure my schedule won’t allow for me to properly join their band and tour. As much as I love the music, I love being with my family too! LOL. We shall see as it’s not even something we have discussed. As for other projects, it’s hard to answer that. I was a fan of PTH and jumped at the chance to step out of my box a little bit, push myself and explore my capabilities. It turned into quite a daunting task, but I’m much better off for it. I think I’d have to evaluate every opportunity in the same way. Obviously my main focus is LOG, it’s still my heart and soul and I’m loving being able to get out and share it with you. We’ve got a few big announcements coming soon regarding tours that will end the Resolution cycle and a little surprise before the end of the year. Stay tuned – and stay metal! ~Chris

Rashod Ollison of The Virginian-Pilot recently conducted an interview with drummer Chris Adler of Richmond, Virginia-based metallers LAMB OF GOD. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On LAMB OF GOD singer Randy Blythe‘s arrest in the Czech Republic in June 2012 on manslaughter charges and the subsequent legal ordeal, which took more than eight months to play out:

Adler: “Not only were we not able to generate any income, but we ended up having to pay more than half a million dollars in legal fees. It bankrupted the entire band; [there was] no money left for any kind of payroll or anything. When Randy was acquitted [in March of this year], everything was on the line at that point. Either it was completely over, or we had a chance to get back out there and pay these bills and get ourselves back on our feet.”

On what he did during LAMB OF GOD‘s hiatus from touring, including playing drums on an album by the metal band PROTEST THE HERO:

Adler: “We have kids now, and it was nice to spend that time at home. But in the back of your head, it’s always nagging you: Is my career over? What am I gonna do now? I love this job. Every night is a Friday night, and when that’s threatened, you get scared.”

On the reception for Blythe and the rest of the band:

Adler: “In the metal community, we have a lot of sympathy and understanding. A lot of people are coming together to support us, knowing the kind of music we’re playing and knowing this kind of accident could happen to them.

“From an outsider’s view, this is just an example of how metal could be dangerous or harmful in some way, and that’s unfortunate. But after this, we’re going to be some kind of advocate for concert safety and try to make that stereotype very untrue.”

On LAMB OF GOD‘s plan to stick to the no-frills, groove-oriented formula that has garnered the group a cult following:

Adler: “We didn’t begin this because we thought it was going to be popular. We just did the kind of stuff we listened to when we were kids and brought that influence into what we do. We’re getting better at writing songs and trying to branch out more, but not get too far from what we do best. At this point, our fans expect a certain product from us. And after eight albums, I can’t say I blame them.”

Yesterday, Tuesday March 5th, a Czech court acquitted the frontman of US heavy metal band LAMB OF GOD, Randy Blythe, of charges he caused the death of a fan at a concert in Prague three years ago.

Lamb Of God drummer Chris Adler has posted the following message: “We greatly appreciate and have been fortunate to have the support of our friends, families and fans from all over the world during a nightmare situation for us in Prague. We are now able to get back to work, but are still saddened by the loss of Daniel Nosek. The trial may be over, but the loss is forever and we also continue to mourn.”